


Someone Who Understands

by caswell



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Autistic Character, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-08
Updated: 2015-07-08
Packaged: 2018-04-08 07:15:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 569
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4295553
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/caswell/pseuds/caswell
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Big crowds, new things, too many people to not know how to interact with - everything is tough for Kenma, but luckily he has someone to help him through it.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Someone Who Understands

**Author's Note:**

> Autistic Kenma adapting to high school-- a present for my lovely boyfriend Howl who is GAY
> 
> Originally posted on my writing blog (http://karthwine.tumblr.com/post/114619894502/pairing-kuroo-kenma-rating-g-words-600)

The first time Kenma walks through the doors of Nekoma High School, he’s just about certain he won’t make it through the year. There’s too many students bustling around, too many sounds grating on his ears; really, there’s too much of _everything_. Kuroo had promised there wasn’t anything to be afraid of, but Kuroo is Kuroo and Kenma is Kenma and Nekoma is, well, Nekoma.   
At the insistence of his parents, Kenma still goes to school every day, sometimes attempting to block out the din with headphones or earplugs. They don’t do much, but they keep him from panicking, clutching his head in his hands and rocking back and forth, which had drawn him some looks on the first day of school. Still, he wishes every second of every day that he could be back at his quiet middle school- or better yet, at home, taking some sort of online course.  
Despite how much the other students enjoy talking to each other, they never make a point of talking to Kenma. Maybe it’s because of the headphones, as Kuroo points out, but who would want to talk to the wimpy freak in the corner anyway? So he gives up, fading into the background as if he wasn’t even there- but watching, as always. It’s okay, he supposes; he has his PSP, and if anything _bad_ happens he can tell Kuroo, but it’s all a little too much sometimes.  
Kenma’s glad that it’s in Kuroo’s room that he first breaks down and cries. He doesn’t know how it happened; one second Kuroo was asking him how his day went, the next second he had his hands curled into his hair, tears burning his eyes. “Kuroo,” he says lowly, “I don’t think I can do this anymore.” He takes a deep breath- in through the nose, out through the mouth, just like his therapist taught him- but sobs still wrack his small chest. “It’s so loud, and nobody notices me…” He raises his head to look up at his friend through teary eyes. “I want it to stop. I want to leave!”  
And suddenly Kuroo is right there, crouching beside him, wordless but comforting as he leans against Kenma. His breathing is languid, relaxed, and soon Kenma realizes he’s supposed to breathe with him. Slowly, his breaths turn from jagged sobs to short gasps, and from short gasps to longer sighs. Gratefully, he looks up at Kuroo, who smiles back at him- not his signature shit-eating grin, but a gentle, comforting smile that makes Kenma feel like he could melt to a puddle right there- an entirely new feeling, but not an unwelcome one.  
Kuroo runs his fingers slowly through Kenma’s hair, like petting a cat, and then- delicately, not forcefully- grabs a bit, rubbing it between his fingers. “That’s right,” he says, “you were going to bleach your hair, right?”  
Kenma nods, but shoots Kuroo a fearful look; even with his friend there, he’s still nervous- nervous to go outside, nervous to change himself, nervous to do anything but hide away from the world. But Kuroo takes Kenma’s hand and holds it gently in his, an unspoken promise that everything will be okay. “Let’s go get some, then,” he mumbles, and gives Kenma a small kiss on the cheek.

Kuroo abruptly stops brushing the bleach into Kenma’s hair when he asks, “Kuroo, now that you’ve kissed me, are we dating?”


End file.
